Shoe construction.



A. H. PRATT.

SHOE CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION FILED NOVA, 1912.

Patented Oct. 6, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

fliiornaya A. H. PRATT.

SHOE CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.4, 1912- I 1 1 12,553, Patented Oct. 6, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

fiiiarneyi ASHTON H. PRATT, OFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SHOE CONSTRUCTION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 6,1914.

Application filed November 4, 1912. Serial No. 729,255.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ASHTON H. PRATT, acitizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the County of Cookand State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and usefulImprovement in Shoe Construction, of which the following is afull,-clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improved shoe construction, in which theparts are secured together in a novel manner, and in this construction Iemploy preferably a metal counter of novel construction in order tocheapen the cost of making shoes.

its is well known in the art, in using leather counters, it is necessaryto employ high grade stock to secure satisfactory results, and owing tothe constantly increasing cost of this grade of leather, the expense involved in the construction of the counters of shoes is rapidly becominga very important item.

In carrying out my invention I employ a metal counter preferably of thinsheet metal tempered, so as to retain its proper form, which counter iscovered with a protecting material, such as heavy fabric, se-

cured thereto to prevent the edges of the metal plate of the counterfrom chafing the parts of the shoe with which said plate would otherwisecome in contact. The metal plate of the counter is preferably formed bysuitable machinery so that it has an inturned flange around its base,the metal ofthe counter adjacent to the flange being quite rigid so asto retain the counter in its proper shape. The upper portion of themetal plate of the counter is preferably slotted to give greaterflexibility to the upper portion of the counter, so that it may readilyconform itself to the foot of the user of the shoe. The counter ispreferably constructed as a separate product by securing to theprotecting covering and inturned flange a portion of a leather insole,so the complete counters, constructed as referred to, may be used in themanufacture of shoes without requiring a prohibitive change in themanner of making the shoes. The sections of insoles secured to thecounter flanges "are preferably slotted back from their forwardedges sothat the counters may be adjusted to different size shoes, and theprotecting covering of fabric of the counter may be located eitherbetween the flange-of the metal plate of the counter and the section ofinsole or on the opposite side of the insole, as desired.

The construction ofcounter just described as a characteristic of myinvention, adapts itself to a novel form of shoe construction to bedescribed below, which also constitutes an essential part of my presentinvention.

In constructing the counters the section ofinsole may be placed eitherinside or outside of the flange of the metal plate, as desired, and inorder that the parts of the shoe mav be securely held together I find itdesirable to employ an extra piece of material which, in effect, is aportion of an insole, upon the other side of said flange, said extrapiece being secured to the section of insole forming a part of thecounter in the manufacture of the shoe. This provides a means forsecurely holding the counter in place in the shoe, and atthe same timeaffords protection to the foot of the user and opportunity for securingthe outer sole and heel to the insole without the necessity of havingthe heel nails pass through the metal of the counter, as would benecessary if it were attempted to use my improved counter in a mannercommon in shoe construction of the art.

It will appear from the following description of my construction that itis immaterial in making the counters whether the metal plate is made ina single piece or built up in sections, the only essential being thatthe structure shall bequite rigid immediately adjacent to'the inturnedflange of the counter and flexible around its upper edge," so as to meetall of the requirements of counters as used in the art.

Having described in a general way the nature of my invention, the samewill be more clearly understood in detail by referring to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a portion of a shoe in vertical longitudinal section inwhich my counter construction is employed. Figs. 2 and 3 are back andside View respectively of the metal plate of my counter construction.Fig. 4c is a top view of the metal plate shown in Figs. 2 and 3, securedto a portion of an insole. Figs. 5, 6, and 7 show views f similar toFig. 1 of modified shoe-constructions for using my lmproved counter inconnection with different arrangements of Small the remaining parts ofthe shoe. Figs. 8 and 9 show in views similar to Figs. 3 and 4 amodified form of counter construction.

As shown in Fig. 1, the counter consists of a metal plate 1 having apiece of heavy fabric, as canvas, disposed on its inner sur face, asshown at 2, said fabric extending down to the angle between the body ofthe metal plate 1, and the inturned flange 3 extending from its loweredge. The fabric 2, is folded over the upper edge of the plate 1 anddown the outside surface of said plate, as indicated at 4, and under theflange 3, in which position it is held, as will be described. The upperedge of the metal plate 1 is slotted, as indicated more clearly in Figs.2 and 3, so that the side sections 5 are comparatively flexible, whilethe rear section 6 is more rigid since it is conformed in the arc of acircle, as indicated in Fig. 4. This facilitates retaining the propershape of the counter back of the heel, where it is particularly liableto be broken down. The flange 3 is secured by means of small tacks 7 toa portion of an insole 8, which as shown in Fig. 4, is slotted from itsforward edge nearly back to the inturned flange 3 so that the counter asa whole may have considerable flexibility laterally to accommodate thenumber of stock sizes that must be kept on hand by any manufacturer. Theflange 3, as indicated in Fig. 4, is preferably slotted to facilitateits construction, and the different portions of the flange have passingthrough them a suflicient number of the tacks 7 to securely hold theparts together. To facilitate driving the tacks 7, the holes formedthrough the flange 3 to receive them may be made by punching from theflange, triangular projecting points 30, which serve to guide the tackdriving tool and tacks. to their proper places.

The protecting fabric 4 may be folded over the flange 3 between saidflange and the section of insole 8, or, if preferred, it may be foldedover the outside of said insole, as indicated at 4 in Fig. 6, theadvantage ofthe latter construction being that a protection is affordedthe upper where it bends around the edge of the insole, which preventsthe upper wearing through as rapldly as it otherwise might.

In making the shoe shown in Fig. 1 the extra piece of material 9, suchas leather, felt or similar material, which constitutes a heel lining,or auxiliary sectional insole, is first placed upon the last and thelining 10 of the shoe is drawn over the edge of it, after which thecounter, consisting, as above described, of the metal plate 1, theprotecting fabric 2 and the sectional insole 8, is put in place. Theparts are temporarily held in place by the points 30, after which theyare secured together by means of the tacks 11, and then the upper 12 isdrawn over the V 9 above the outer sole 16*.

edge of the insole 8 and held in place by the tacks 13, which, as theyare driven, clench against the underside of the flange 3 of the metalplate 1. is then put in place, a skived joint being formed at 15, whichmay be held together in any suitable manner as by cement or nailing, asdesired, and the outer sole 16 is put in place and held by nails 31 andthe heel 17 is fastened on by nails 18, which strike the underside ofthe flange 3 and are thus clenched to securely hold the parts together.

From the above it will be observed that only the tacks 11 projectthrough the extra piece 9, which may be comparatively small and few innumber since their only function is to hold the extra piece 9 and thelower edge of the lining 10 in place.

It is to be understood that a suitable filler of any desired descriptionis preferably employed in the slotted portion of the section 8 of theinsole to give a supporting surface for the extra piece 9.

It will be noticed that at the heel of the shoe, the lining 10 is withinthe insole 14, whereas in front of the counter the lining is between theinsole 14 and the outer sole 16, that is upon the opposite side of thein sole. To effect this change. in position, it is desirable to slit thelining a short distance from its lower edge on each side of the shoe asindicated at 32 in Fig. 1.

The extra piece of material 9 preferably extends some distance in frontof the joint 15 so as to reinforce said joint and strengthen the shoe.

.The essential difference between the construction just described andthat shown in Fig. 5 is that, instead of placing the extra piece ofmaterial 9 above the insole 8, it is placed below the insole and betweenthe insole and the outersole 16*, this construction resulting in aslight diflerence as follows: In the making of the shoe the insole 8 isfirst placed upon the last and the lining 10 is drawn in place aroundthe heel, after which the counter, formed as above described, is put inposition. Then the extra piece 9 is placed outside of the flange 3* ofthe counter and held in such position by the points 30*- and small tacks11*. In this modified construction the lower edge of the outer portion 4of the counter protecting fabric is folded outside of the piece 9, so asto aflord an increased protection for th upper 12 where it is foldedaround the piece The counter in this construction may be held in placeby the tacks 7* passing into the extra piece 9, and constitutingtherewith an integral structure separate from the shoe, or if preferredthe tacks may be driven in the reverse direction through flange 3 intothe insole 8 after which the extra piece 9 may be secured in place bythe tacks 11*, as indicated.

The main insole 14 After the counter is secured in place by the tacks11, and the protecting fabric and upper have been drawn around the outeredge of the extra piece 9 and held in place by the small tacks 13*, theouter sole 16 and the heel 17 are secured in position by the nails 18 ina manner much the same as that described above for the constructionshown in Fig. 1. I

The constr ction shown in Fig. 6 is similar to that sfl own in Fig. 1with the exception that the protecting fabric l is folded around theoutside of the section 8 of the insole instead of between said sectionand the flange 3* of the counter, as in the case in the constructionshown in Fig. 1. In this nodification it is preferable to make theinsole 8 continuous as a stronger construction results. In this case thepoints 3O extend outward to guide the tacks 7,and these points thereforeassist in holding the insole 8 in proper position.

In the construction shown in Fig. 7 use is made of a metal counter 1Without extra extra piece of material 9 protecting fabric.

7 place and the parts are secured together by small tacks 20. Then theinsole 8 is put in place and securely held by the tacks 21, after whichthe vamp doubling 22 is drawn around the outside of the counter 1 andfolded over its lower edge, as indicated. The upper 12 is then drawnaround the counter and secured to the insole 8 by tacks 23, after whichthe outer sole 16 and the heel 17 are securely held in place by thenails 31 and 18, which clench against the inturned flange formed on thecounter 1. The counter, the lining, the vamp doubling and the upper aresecurely held together by rivets 24 which pass through all of theseparts, as indicated, and thus securely hold the flexible upper ends ofthe metal counter in proper position relatively to the remaining partsof the shoes.

The counter shown in Figs. 8 and 9 consists of a plurality of flexibleside sections 25 and aseparate back section 26 which are securely heldtogether by a strip of metal 27 extending around them near their lowerends. Each of the pieces 25 and 26 has formed thereon an inturned flangefor engaging an inturned flange formed of the strip 27 and these flangesengage a section 28 of insole in much the manner that the inturnedflange engages such a section in the construction shown in Figs. 1 and4:. This construction does away with the necessity of expensive dies forforming the metal plates of the counters, and permits the use of stockpieces 25 and 26 for a Wide variety of sizes and shapes of counters. Itwill also appear that this built up construction of counter affords ameans for employing a wide variety of combinations of material formaking the same as the pieces 25v and 26 may be of metal or any otherstiif material or replaced by material in one piece as cheap counterleather, the necessary strength and rigidity being secured by means ofthe flanged strip 27 It is to be understood that the lining of the shoeneed be slit only when the insole is outside of the counter, but it maybe slit in any event to facilitate folding it into .proper positionaround the heel.

From the above description it will appear that I have provided by myinvention, a novel shoe construction in which the counter may be insideof the insole regardless of the particular construction of counter, andthat the counter may have the novel construction described irrespectiveof the shoe construction with which it is used, or in combination withthe particular construction just referred to, as the case may be.

I'Vhile I have referred above, in describing the various forms ofconstruction shown, to the use of a lining in connection with thecounter to in part hold it in place and cover the same, it will beunderstood that my in vention. may be employed in any form of shoeconstruction whether a lining is used or not as long as a pocket isprovided for the upwardly extending stiffening portion of the countereither inside or outside of the quarter of the upper, to hold thecounter in place and cover the same.

lVhile I have shown my invention in the particular embodiments hereindescribed, I do not, however, limit myself to these constructions,butdesire to claim any equivalents that may suggest themselves to thoseskilled in the art.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. In a shoe construction, the combination of an insole, and a countercomprising a plurality of thicknesses and having an inturned metalflange, one of said thicknesses being above said insole.

2. In a shoe construction, the combination I of an insole, an extra heelpiece, and a metal counter having an inturned metal flange securedbetween the insole and extra heel piece. 3. In a shoe construction, thecombination of two flat pieces of material inside the shoe and above theheel, and a metal counter hav ing an inturned m'etal flange securedbetween said two pieces.

4. In a shoe construction, the combination of two members comprising theinsole and an extra heel piece, and a metal counter having an inturnedmetal flange secured between said members to form an integralcounter-structure.

5. In a shoe construction, the combination of an insole, an extraheel-piece, a metal counter secured between the insole and heelpiece, anupper, an outer sole and heel, and nails extending through the outersole, the heel and the upper to secure them in place, said counterserving to clench said nails at their inner ends.

6. In a shoe construction the combination of a metal counter having aninturned metal flange, two pieces of material, comprising an insole andextra heel piece disposed upon opposite sides of the flange of saidcounter, and an upper secured to the outer one of said pieces. v

7. In a shoe construction, the combination of a metal counter having aninturned metal flange, two pieces of material comprising an insole andextra heel piece disposed upon oppositesides of the flange of saidcounter,-

an upper secured'to the outer one of said pieces and nails holding saidupper in place, said flange serving to clench the inner ends of saidnails.

8. In a shoe construction, the combination of a counter comprising aplurality of thicknesses, two pieces of material comprising an insoleand an extra heel piece upon opposite sides of one of the thicknesses ofthe counter, and an outer sole, another one of said thicknesses of thecounter being between the outer one of said pieces and said outer sole.

9. In a shoe construction, a counter comprising a metal plate having aninturned flange and slotted around its upper edge, a protecting mediumsurrounding the metal plate and secured thereto, and a section of insolesecured to said flange to constitute therewith a unitary structureseparate from the shoe in which the counter may be used.

10. In a shoe construction, a counter comprising a metal plate having aninturned flange and slotted around its upper edge, a protecting mediumsurrounding the metal plate and secured thereto, and a section of insolesecured to said plate, said section of insole having its forward portioncentrally cut away to permit adjustipg the counter to different widths.

11. A counterv for shoes comprising an upwardly extending stiffeningportion and a metal flange-extending inwardly therefrom to hold nailsfor securing it toa shoe, said flange having projecting spurs locatedbetween its edges to penetrate into the shoe structure to hold thecounter in place.

12. A counter for shoes comprising a formed metal plate having anupwardly extending portion and an integral flange at its lower edge tohold nails for securing it to a shoe, said upwardly extending portionbeing slotted to constitute flexible side members and an upwardlyextending rigid back portion.

13. A counter for shoes comprising a formed plate of tempered steelhaving an upwardly extending portion and an inturned flange at its loweredge to hold nails for securing it to a shoe, said upwardly extendingportion being slotted to constitute flexible side members and anupwardly extending rigid back portion.

14. A counter for shoes comprising a formed tempered steel plate havingan upwardly extending portion slotted at its upper edge to make itssides flexible and provided with a practically continuous inturnedflange around its lower edge.

I 15. A counter for shoes comprising a formed tempered steelplate havingan upper portion consisting of a plurality of flexible resilientvertical stays inwardly inclined to fit the heel of the foot, and havinga continuous portion to support said stays, said continuous portionhaving a practically continuous reinforcement around its lower edge.

16. A counter for shoes comprising an outwardly distended body portionof tempered steel, and a plurality of flexible resilient vertical staysextending upward from said body portion.

17. A counter for shoes comprising a continuous support of temperedsteel, and a plurality of flexible resilient vertical stays extendingupward from saidsupport.

18. A counter for shoes comprising a body portion of tempered steel anda plurality of flexible resilient vertical stays extending upward fromsaid body portion, said counter having outwardly distended sides toconform with the heel of the foot.

19. A counter for shoes consisting of an integral tempered steel platehaving a continuous body portion, and a plurality of upwardly extendingflexible resilient stays, said plate having outwardly distended sides toconform to the heel of the foot.

20. A tempered steel counter for shoes having a relatively rigid backportion and relatively flexible side portions.

2-1. A counter for shoes comprising a tempered steel plate having aninturned flange at its lower edge.

22. A counter for shoes formed from a tempered steel plate and having anupwardly extending portion provided with inwardly inclined sides to fitthe heel of the foot, said upwardly extending portion being slotted tomake its sides flexible.

In witness whereof, ll hereunto subscribe my name this 30th day ofOctober A. D. 1912.

a A$HTON H. PRATT.

Witnesses:

ALBERT C. BELL, LEsLm V97. Fmoxn.

